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iPhone 4S News

There's something about using an iPhone as a stealthy weapon that instantly gets my nerd juices flowing. Spraytect has decided to literally make protection mobile by attaching a small cartridge of pepper spray with a fast-action trigger to their iPhone case.

Not just any kind of pepper spray though, but a seriously vicious blend that uses habanero pepper — the exact same formula employed by our US Military, Homeland Security, FBI offices and Police Departments across the country. Effectively elevating a harmless iPhone to imminent threat status overnight.

The fact that the aerosol cartridge sprays are detachable from the iPhone case is a bonus — although it instantly defeats the purpose and also removes a fantastic conversation starter with the ladies.

You'll pay $39.95 for your own lethal Spraytect case for iPhone 4 and 4S plus $17.95 for refills. Each case comes with a pepper cartridge and test cartridge included along with instructions on using the handy safety latch.

I would expect to see a large number of iPhone pepper spray prank videos populating YouTube sooner than later. That sort of grand buffoonery is inevitable with this very special kind of case.

When 79-year-old Eleanor Day went in for surgery on Tuesday morning to receive a cochlear implant led by Dr. Douglas Backous — her entire procedure was live-tweeted from the Swedish Medical Center in Seattle. How social is that?

One member of the hospital's communications team, Drew Symonds, rapidly posted images using the Instagram app — capturing photos in the operating room with an iPhone 4S in one hand and a Droid Bionic in the other, according to Symonds who reached out to us via email.

Hundreds of people in the Twittersphere followed along as Drew documented an extremely detailed look into a simple hearing restoration surgery that included several graphic images uploaded to Instagram.

“Throughout the procedure, Twitter users weighed in about their own
experiences with cochlear implants and were able to interact with people
with hearing loss who have not yet received the life-changing surgery.” Symonds told The Atlantic.

Social media was leveraged by the hospital as a tool to dispel the mystery surrounding cochlear implants as hundreds of Twitter followers interacted with Symonds during the live mobile health event.

“Amazing tech, you can barely see the electrode, thin as a hair.” Symonds wrote next to an Instagram image before the cochlear implant was inserted.

Dr. Backous hopes that Mrs. Day's experience will encourage more people to consider the same kind of hearing restoration surgery — citing that “less than 10
percent of those who qualify for cochlear implants choose to undergo the
procedure”, Backous told The Atlantic.

“When @swedish live tweets surgery, it opens an oft misunderstood
procedure into a shared emotional public experience, igniting
discussion.” One follower @otorhinolarydoc tweeted from Australia during the Swedish event.

The surgical procedure took roughly 30 minutes to complete — and Mrs. Day “will be able to hear for the first time in five years” when the cochlear implant is switched on October 14th. A YouTube video documenting the implant being turned on is already planned.

The dangerous mind of Garry Booth has come up with a new t-shirt design featuring an exploded iPhone 4S in all its glory. Garry's designs definitely make some of the most original looking nerd wear found here on planet Earth.

Grab your Exploded 4S in either Silver or the darker Asphalt for $19 — there's also a screen-printed (18 x 24) poster for those few who would rather hang iPhone art on your walls and not on your smooth, hairless chest.

After being hit hard by a huge number of customer complaints — AT&T will begin unlocking off-contract iPhone devices starting on Sunday, April 8th according to a company statement obtained by 9to5 Mac.

AT&T will unlock your iPhone if your account is in good financial standing, and you have completed your obligated contract term of commitment.

“Beginning Sunday, April 8, we will offer qualifying customers the ability to unlock their AT&T iPhones. The only requirements are that a customer’s account must be in good standing, their device cannot be associated with a current and active term commitment on an AT&T customer account, and they need to have fulfilled their contract term, upgraded under one of our upgrade policies or paid an early termination fee.”

The news is particularly great for customers who want to travel with their AT&T iPhone overseas without having to pay huge international roaming charges. The move may also serve to boost resale values of phones no longer bound by a contract which Apple currently sells at premium prices.

All qualifying customers need to do is call AT&T support to get their device unlocked. Those customers still on a two year contact will not be able to take advantage of the unlocking policy until your contract is over. But Apple's website alerts people that the unlocked iPhone only works with supported GSM networks, like AT&T in the U.S.

AT&T's big announcement comes a few months ahead of Apple launching their newest iPhone design which most of us are expecting to arrive later this summer. It's almost time to bid farewell to 4S and say hello to iPhone 5.

Gizmon's retro design conjures up the sexy feel of a classic Leica Rangefinder camera in this iCA Military Edition iPhone case. The replica design is amazingly detailed with several essential accessories created to transport your iPhone back to the days of the popular war-time point and shoot.

Although I originally covered the $65 silver and black iCA edition case, the release of this stunning $70 Military Edition is worth a second look. The case is constructed from 32 polycarbonate pieces that neatly fits an iPhone inside and works with a real shutter release button mounted on top.

A detachable tripod mount, retro leather case, attachable flash, and snap-on lenses make the Gizmon a functional design that pushes the high-end case market forward by leaps and bounds. But those accessories will cost you extra.

I'm convinced that the art of iPhoneography just got a whole lot cooler.

Schneider Optics has launched a series of professional-quality lenses designed especially for iPhone 4 and 4S in hopes of raising the bar on iPhoneography.

The iPro Lens System works with a rugged snap-on case which utilizes a bayonet mount to quickly attach fisheye and wide-angle lenses for capturing professional-grade photos.

The wide-angle lens provides 35% more coverage of the area in front of you while the fisheye lens captures a 165-degree field of view. One of the more clever attachments is the iPro handle that serves as a dual tripod mount, but it also neatly stores the lenses inside.

This three-piece system costs $199 and is available for purchase now at the company's website. Schneider Optics is also planning the release of their iPro Tele Lens. The 2X telephoto narrows the iPhone’s field of view by 50% and is expected to arrive sometime in April for an additional $100.

Although Schneider Optics is not the first to offer attachable photo lenses for iPhone, the company has refined an innovative and handy pro grade kit that should make shooting on the go hassle free. Of course, the proof is in the image quality which is all that truly matters in my opinion.

Losing its longtime exclusive carrier standing with Apple has not slowed down iPhone sales one bit for AT&T. The company sold a record setting 9.4 million smartphones in the fourth quarter of 2011, which included 7.6 million iPhone activations and accounted for 20 percent of Apple’s quarterly handset sales.

The Hulk-like iPhone sales figures amounted to a remarkable 80-percent of all smartphones sold by AT&T, which were heavily influenced by the introduction of Apple’s iPhone 4S on October 14th.

AT&T beat their previous quarterly smartphone sales record of 6.1 million by an impressive 50 percent — up nearly 60 percent from the year-ago period. Though Android devices also set new sales records for the wireless carrier, it should be noted that iPhone snatched up a gargantuan piece of the pie despite going on sale two weeks into the quarter.

“Looking ahead, we start 2012 with the best visibility we’ve had in some time, and we’re well positioned to deliver solid results,” AT&T chairman and CEO, Randall Stephenson stated in a press release.

There's good reason for AT&T to be optimistic that this kind of success will continue into 2012, considering the imminent launch of iPhone 5 which is expected to be released by late summer.

According to new data from Kantar Worldpanel ComTech, iPhone has surpassed Android in US market share, based on the last 12 weeks of sales in 9 countries (including the US, UK, and Australia). The report puts iPhone's share at 44.9% while Android took 44.8% of the US market.

The iPhone Micro USB Adapter which quietly made its way into the UK Apple store for an additional £8 back on October 14th, is showing up bundled with iPhone 4S purchases in China, according to a detailed report by M.I.C. Gadget.

Apple officially launched the "little dongle" in compliance with a 2009 European Union standard that will see micro-USB charging devices used for all data-enabled mobile phones. The voluntary agreement was signed by 14 major smartphone manufacturers including Apple.

While every new iPhone handset includes Apple's proprietary dock connector, those seeking Apple's Micro-USB adapter outside the U.S. were required to pay for it until the iPhone 4S launch in China. While the adapter appears to be Apple's chosen method of complying with the EU standard, should the company charge some users for their micro-USB solution and include it free for others?

The report goes on to confirm that China is currently in the process of "pushing a law that would require all phone makers to agree upon micro-USB as a universal standard". Which may explain why Apple is choosing to pro-actively include the adapter inside the box with its Phone 4S.

I should also note that Apple does not currently supply a cable for their micro-USB adapter, nor is the dongle required to charge or dock the iPhone 4S. With that said, I would still expect those new iPhone 4S customers abroad who've paid extra for a Micro USB connector to be a little ticked off to learn that China buyers are being given the same item for free.

Apple's iPhone Micro USB Adapter is not currently for sale in the company's U.S. online store.

Kodak’s complaint asserts that Apple has infringed upon at least four patents on technologies for automatically transmitting digital images from cameras and other devices. The suit also relates to devices selectively sending images over a cellular or Wi-Fi network.

Kodak may ultimately be trying to whip up interest in their digital-imaging patents which the company hopes to sell off in order to avoid bankruptcy, according to one report.

“Kodak has been trying for some time to find a strategic buyer for its digital imaging patents,” siad Florian Mueller, who runs the Foss Patents blog.

"Today's lawsuits are presumably part of the sales and marketing effort for those patents: Kodak seeks to demonstrate that there are still some interesting assets in its portfolio that can be used to sue major wireless device makers."

Kodak’s Chief IP officer, Tim Lynch noted in a statement announcing the suit, “We remain open to negotiating a fair and amicable agreement with these companies, which has always been our preference and our practice with other licensees.”

As Eastman Kodak seeks damages and the ability to prohibit further infringement with their lawsuit, it appears evident that the company is really after a considerable hunk of royalties for its war chest of 1,100 digital imaging patents--essential to cameras, smartphones, and other devices.

A number of HTC's Android-based devices have also been named in Kodak's patent infringement suit.